I found a spot today where a narrow, steep drainage comes up the side of a steep ridge. It's a PA mountain setting. As the drainage hits a bench about 2/3 of the way up there is a scrape. It's the biggest I've ever seen, the pawed area is half the size of a truck hood but the area that is beat down with tracks where no vegitation grows whatsoever is bigger than a truck hood. If you are looking uphill, to the left there is an elevated laurel thicket that leads over to a point. To the right is also a laurel line that has a point. Coming up out of the drainage the rest of the way it widens and leads to a gas well with a saddle to the left. At the top of that drainage there is a rub line on trees about as big as your upper arm. Some of the trees are really thrashed and gouged. The rub line leads across the gravel gas well road just outside the saddle and about 35 yards in there is already a scrape line started this early. The trail is pretty well defined with large droppings all along it. I set up a camera on the large scrape and one on one of the secondary scrapes that I plan on using just to see what this buck looks like. I've never seen secondary scrapes this early on and I've not seen a buck lay an aggressive rub line this early either. I mean a couple trees are really gouged. My suspicion is it may be an area where more than one older buck has overlapping territories and they are hurrying up in setting up boundaries being that competition is nearby. I don't think I'm going to hunt that giant scrape until at least mid october. I stayed away from it by about 20 feet so I didn't get a good look at the tracks. Do you think this could possibly be the scenario where more than one mature or at least 3.5 year old deer is using the area?
Another knowledge packed episode that you have provided. I really need to dig deep into this stuff. After missing three does and not drawing on a big buck that I should have I am determined to get my first buck and doe with a bow 🏹🦌
Thanks Beau! I hunt South Cherokee national forest just south of the Smoky Mountain National Park and can use all the help I can get. I really appreciate all your effort.
Podcast listener and new RU-vid subscriber here. Your podcast voice never gave away that you were wearing a stache right off the set of Ron Burgundy. Kidding man. Enjoy the content. It's great stuff. 👍
